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12-08-08, 10:08 PM
I had an unexpected great day of riding in Switzerland in late August -- here's
photos of farmland riding on bike route 9 in Simmental (http://www.roberts-1.com/t/b08/ch/k/d/index.htm)
Lots of riders (including me) think of Switzerland as a place for riding the high mountains -- but I'm finding it also has some of the prettiest farmland riding I've found so far in Europe or North America -- (somehow seems unfair.)
Anybody got a suggestion for some more pretty farmland riding in the valleys of Switzerland?
The Simmental area is west from the Thunersee (Lake Thun) and east from Gstaad and the Saanenmöser pass - [see on map (http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&msa=0&msid=115487569681665383360.0004578dc3f5d6b608529&ll=46.609356,7.490616&spn=0.240569,0.455246&z=11)]. My focus was on high mountain passes, but I needed a way to connect from Martigny to Interlaken, and that took me thru Zweisimmen and Boltigen and Wimmis. First I rode on the main road going east from Saanenmöser thru Zweisimmen to Wimmis near Spiez -- which had some fun downhill sections, but mostly too much traffic. So then I rode west up bike route 9, mostly off the main road -- sometimes on dirt/gravel -- and it was great, prettier than lots of the high mountain passes.
All but one of my photos is between Wimmis and Reidenbach, so a way to ride that section in the direction more down than up might be to take the train from near Wimmis or Spiez west up to the Boltigen train station, then ride west (mostly on the sidewalk) from Boltigen to Reidenbach, then south a little to hit bike route 9. Or for more riding on bike route 9, could take the train further up west to Zweisimmen -- or to Saanenmöser. Or if want to do some more substantial climbing, could even take the train down the other side of the pass to Saanen or Gstaad.
for some details about that riding see on this page (http://www.roberts-1.com/b/v/e/08c/index.htm#Saanenmoeser_to_Zweisimmen).
Ken
photos of farmland riding on bike route 9 in Simmental (http://www.roberts-1.com/t/b08/ch/k/d/index.htm)
Lots of riders (including me) think of Switzerland as a place for riding the high mountains -- but I'm finding it also has some of the prettiest farmland riding I've found so far in Europe or North America -- (somehow seems unfair.)
Anybody got a suggestion for some more pretty farmland riding in the valleys of Switzerland?
The Simmental area is west from the Thunersee (Lake Thun) and east from Gstaad and the Saanenmöser pass - [see on map (http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&msa=0&msid=115487569681665383360.0004578dc3f5d6b608529&ll=46.609356,7.490616&spn=0.240569,0.455246&z=11)]. My focus was on high mountain passes, but I needed a way to connect from Martigny to Interlaken, and that took me thru Zweisimmen and Boltigen and Wimmis. First I rode on the main road going east from Saanenmöser thru Zweisimmen to Wimmis near Spiez -- which had some fun downhill sections, but mostly too much traffic. So then I rode west up bike route 9, mostly off the main road -- sometimes on dirt/gravel -- and it was great, prettier than lots of the high mountain passes.
All but one of my photos is between Wimmis and Reidenbach, so a way to ride that section in the direction more down than up might be to take the train from near Wimmis or Spiez west up to the Boltigen train station, then ride west (mostly on the sidewalk) from Boltigen to Reidenbach, then south a little to hit bike route 9. Or for more riding on bike route 9, could take the train further up west to Zweisimmen -- or to Saanenmöser. Or if want to do some more substantial climbing, could even take the train down the other side of the pass to Saanen or Gstaad.
for some details about that riding see on this page (http://www.roberts-1.com/b/v/e/08c/index.htm#Saanenmoeser_to_Zweisimmen).
Ken